Washington state lawmakers’ emails, texts ruled public

OLYMPIA, Washington — The emails, text messages and other records held by Washington state lawmakers are subject to public disclosure, a judge said Friday in a ruling in favour of a media coalition led by the Associated Press.

Thurston County Superior Court Judge Chris Lanese sided with the group that sued in September, challenging the Washington legislature’s assertion that lawmakers are excluded from stricter disclosure rules that apply to other elected officials and agencies.

While Lanese said the offices of individual lawmakers are subject to the Public Records Act, the Washington legislature, the House and Senate were not.

But regarding the individual lawmakers named, Lanese said the statute was clear.

The law “literally says that representatives and senators and their offices are agencies under the Public Records Act,” he said from the bench. “The defendants have raised many different arguments contending that that is incorrect in this case.

“However, none of the arguments advanced by the defendants here can escape the fact that the plain and unambiguous language of the statute literally has a definitional chain that goes from agencies to state agencies to state offices to state legislative offices,” Lanese said.

He noted lawmakers can always amend the law, but unless they do, they are subject to the state’s public records law.

The media’s lawsuit focused on how lawmakers interpreted a 1995 revision to a 1971 definition of legislative records. Legislative lawyers have regularly cited that change as a reason to withhold records.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision that records of state lawmakers are in fact subject to public disclosure,” said AP’s deputy managing editor for U.S. News Noreen Gillespie.

“Today’s ruling is a victory for the public — allowing the people to know what their elected officials are doing behind closed doors.”